Phoenix Coyotes hold off Los Angeles Kings in physical, tight matchup

GLENDALE – The Coyotes needed a jolt to rediscover their identity, and it came from the most unlikely of circumstances:

- Playing against a team that trumped them 7-4 only five days ago.

-With a make-shift roster after their numbers were depleted because of a suspension and injuries.

-And after giving up 40-plus shots.

But the Coyotes managed to settle back into their patent defensive style and slugged out a 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings in front of 10,452 Tuesday at Jobing.com Arena to improve to 5-0-1 on home ice.

“We needed to get our game in order a little bit,” coach Dave Tippett said. “Let’s not kid ourselves. We still gave up 40 shots, but we competed the way we need to compete if we’re going to have a chance to be successful.”

Center Kyle Chipchura contributed a Gordie Howe hat trick with a goal, assist and fight, and center Andy Miele posted the first two points of his NHL career.

Miele and winger Jordan Szwarz were beckoned from the team’s American Hockey League affiliate after center Martin Hanzal received a two-game suspension for charging and center Jeff Halpern was sidelined with an upper-body injury, and the new-look Coyotes delivered.

“It just falls under the category we never want to use anything as an excuse for not winning,” Tippett said. “We feel like we have people that one guy goes out, there’s an opportunity for a guy but we still expect to win.

“Sometimes you’ve got young guys looking for an opportunity, and sometimes they give you energy and sometimes you can just find that combination or player that comes in and does the job.”

What helped, though, was the Coyotes and Kings reverted back to their usual hard-checking, penalty-laden, tight-scoring rivalry after losing the offensive shootout Thursday in Los Angeles.

“You get shellacked like we did in LA I think it’s nice to play them so soon after we did that so we could kind of get it back,” goalie Mike Smith said. “To respond like we did was nice to see.”

Ten penalties were called in the first period, and the Coyotes outshot the Kings 17-9.

Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson had a goal waved off late in the period because of goaltender interference. Center Antoine Vermette and Kings defenseman Drew Doughty were jostling in front of Kings goalie Ben Scrivens’ crease, eventually knocking the goalie down before Ekman-Larsson’s shot went in.

The Coyotes tightened up in the second with Chipchura the only one going to the box for his fight with former Coyote Daniel Carcillo.

Late in the period, the Kings found five quality shots on Smith in a three-minute span and after the fourth line iced the puck, Tippett called a timeout.

“It’s funny how momentum in the middle of a game can change, and a team that’s dominating can be back on their heels and the team that’s on their heels can get up on their toes,” captain Shane Doan said. “It takes big saves and timely plays.”

A brief 46 seconds after the timeout, defenseman Derek Morris’ shot bounced off two Kings players and trickled past Scrivens with only 1:41 left in the period. Chipchura and Miele assisted on the goal.

And then, with six seconds left in the second and on the power play, Doan tipped a point shot from Ekman-Larsson to make it 2-0. It was the 100th power play goal of Doan’s career.

“That was an important time,” Smith said. “We thought we’d built on that timeout and made something happen out of it.”

After wrestling the momentum back from the Kings, the Coyotes didn’t let it go in the third. Chipchura redirected a pass from Dave Moss with his skate 5:38 into the period, and Miele registered his second assist.

The Kings earned one goal back on the power play when center Jarret Stoll walked into a shot, fooling Smith at 16:39.But the most encouraging development was the improved defensive play.

Their structure was better and so was Smith. He was suspect on a few goals last week but was steady on his 41 saves against the Kings.

“I thought rebounds were kind of going out all over the place, and I’m not real pleased with that,” Smith said. “But in front of me, I thought we did a lot better job boxing guys out and getting rid of rebounds.”

The Coyotes still trail San Jose, Anaheim and Vancouver in the division but gained a two-point edge on the Kings to sit fourth in the Pacific. It’s too early to take a serious look at the standings, but the Coyotes take stock in how they’re stacking up against these teams.

“We want to belong with teams like this and to be up there with them,” Chipchura said. “You’ve got to win your head-to-head matches and by beating teams like this, it’s going to be a hard, grinding type game and I thought we played solid.”

Report

Key moment: With 2:27 left in the second and after a slew of chances by the Kings, Coyotes coach Dave Tippett called a timeout. The Coyotes responded by scoring two goals before the period ended.

Key number: 100 Power-play goals for captain Shane Doan after he tipped an Oliver Ekman-Larsson point shot with six seconds left in the second.

View from the press box: With center Martin Hanzal serving a suspension and center Jeff Halpern injured, the Coyotes are counting on the youth to patch the holes in their lineup and neither Andy Miele nor Jordan Szwarz looked out of place in their debuts. Miele earned two assists, the first points of his NHL career, and Szwarz had strong positioning and managed a few scoring chances.

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